[[ I think I would likely switch the abilities used for B'Reh's checks, with survival giving a better sense of the natural rock formations and hazards, and investigation being used to search an area for a specific tool/item? Not that it particularly matters with a 2 and a 19, but always interesting to see how different people interpret what skills are relevant for something! Probably could even argue nature for the first one. ]]
Searching the ground near the portion of the tunnel with the rotted struts, Vira doesn't see any obvious signs of Kenna having passed through, despite this being the only way she reasonably could've passed through given the size of the other branching tunnels you've passed so far. She does notice once again that the supports are unaltered, meaning that if Kenna did pass through here, it must have been with either a great deal of speed or care to avoid triggering a collapse.
As B'Reh taps the supports, the clicking sound of talons against wood echoes down the stone tunnel, and a layer of dust falls from the ceiling along with a few small pebbles. As the sound fades, so does the falling dust, and nothing else notable happens above, nor does the strig find any further hints down low. The only weak points she can spot are the struts themselves, whose weakness initially triggered this dilemma in how to proceed.
Despite a very thorough search, there simply isn't much in the way of raw materials to work with in the cave system. The tunnels from the entrance to here appeared to have been unsupported by any similar beams, fairly solid apart from the occasional crevice or branching passage. The only plants that seem to grow down here are simple mosses and fungi. There would be more to choose from outside the caves, with the few vine-covered trees dotted around the swamp, but that would require two repetitions of the 20 minute trek that got the party here in the first place.
"It looks like we either bash our way through to that other tunnel or make our way through here very fast or very slow." Vira observes with a sigh, disappointed at the lack of materials. "Getting vines from outside would take a while, and I'm not even sure they'd strengthen the struts enough to be worth it."
Aric thinks back to the writings he studied at the monastery in preparation for his journey. Many of the books and scrolls he's read are too out-of-date to contain any truly useful information in their print, but he recalls a note scratched onto a scrap of bark that mentioned the abandoned tunnels of the Mokk Caverns, and the frequent small collapses that occurred there. Whatever monk or acolyte had written the note had suffered a collapse themselves, sustaining a few injuries in the process, but found it moderately simple to dig upward and crawl across the rubble to the far tunnel entrance they had originally been trying to reach. A quick study of the cave roof corroborates this story for Aric. After all, if the rubble and instability went far enough upward to fill the passage entirely, it likely would spread further outward as well, rather than being this localized within the cavern.
Vira's feathers puff up in excitement as she hears the idea. "I never would've thought of that. Let's give it a try. You all stay back; time for me to do what I'm good at." After waiting until the others are a safe distance away, she swings her greataxe at the nearest strut before running back herself.
B'Reh listens intently as Aric shares the note's insight and nods thoughtfully. "That might just work. If we can dig upward and create a small passage, it could save us the risk of a full collapse, but the tunnel we create might just be as unstable. Though, I suppose the main pressure and instability will be relieved this way. I say we try."
She turns to Vira, offering a faint smile as the strig moves to climb. "Here, let me help." With her quarterstaff in hand, she uses it as a lever to assist in loosening rocks and debris as Vira begins to dig into the ceiling. At the same time, she places a hand lightly on Vira’s shoulder and utters a quiet prayer, her holy symbol glowing faintly as she casts Guidance. "May the Rhythm guide your strength."
As the debris begins to fall, she steps back carefully, keeping an eye on the struts for any signs of additional strain. "Let’s keep steady, everyone. Slow and deliberate—this should work if we remain patient."
As the others back away, Vira winds up for a swing at the first of the rotted struts, but the close confines slightly throws off her swing and her axe merely glances off the wall.
As she retreats, Brynlee reaches for her crystal and says, "Let's see if I can be of some use here." Holding out her palm, she releases a burst of flame that streaks towards the strut Vira just swung at (nat 1 to hit). Unfortunately, her very limited darkvision from B'Reh's earlier spell fails her, and the flames go streaking past the strut into the tunnel before hitting a wall where the tunnel begins to curve. "Dratted cave. Do we just keep trying to hit the struts until they break? Or do you think there are other ways to collapse it?"
[[ AlterEgo has had some life things come up, so I'm going to take minimal control of Brynlee for now until either they're able to return to the game or we get to a point where Brynlee can break off from the group and we can bring in someone new, likely once you all return to Winnowing Reach. She'll mostly just go along with your plans and actions in the caverns, but I won't necessarily stick to my general rule of only using cantrips/unlimited use abilities for my actions on behalf of a PC. ]]
"We can keep swinging, but it might take more effort than it’s worth. These struts look rotted—maybe there’s a weak spot we can hit, or another way to bring the whole thing down faster. If we can loosen the base or use the weight of the tunnel against itself, we might not have to smash every single one."
She taps her axe lightly against her shoulder, scanning the structure more closely. "Anyone got a way to make it shake? Something that might weaken it all at once? If not, I’m ready to keep hacking away."She steps back toward the struts, ready to try again if needed. "We’ll get it down one way or another."
Aric hits one of the struts with his crossbow, chipping away at some of the rotten wood, but the structure doesn't seem to suffer greatly from the single hit.
Brynlee speaks up in response to Vira."I can try something to shake it up a bit, but it'll take more energy than those simple energy bursts I've been using. Should I try it, or do you want to look for weak spots first?"
B'Reh steps forward, her tone calm but firm. "If it takes this much effort to bring the tunnel down, it might be more stable than we thought. Perhaps it will hold long enough for us to pass through and return safely, provided we move with care." She glances at Brynlee, a thoughtful expression crossing her face. "And even if the worst should happen and the tunnel collapses behind us, your talents as a burrower could prove invaluable. Let’s conserve our strength for what lies ahead." She pauses, gripping her holy symbol tightly. "I say we proceed cautiously. If we’re wrong, we’ll deal with the consequences together, but this takes valuable time and after we need even more time to dig through the rubble for sure."
B’Reh also rolled a 8 (misclicked and rolled Religion but I figured we can just use that roll. Mod should be +2 instead of -1, so it returns 8. And feel free to use guidance. I think we only get to use it once, so I won’t add it, too)
[[ Just realized I forgot to specify that this was a group check, which would probably affect how you use your buffs. Aric can also help one person since he is proficient and can use help as a bonus action. B'Reh would have disadvantage from her armor unless Aric used his help to negate that, but for a group check it's probably preferable to just let her have a lower roll and help someone else with true advantage, so I'll go ahead and apply it to Vira in this case for the sake of moving things along. ]]
The group moves through the tunnel carefully, with Brynlee and B'Reh making a bit more noise than they mean to and sending a fresh layer of dust falling down, but the tunnel remains stable enough for you to pass through the area. The ceiling quickly becomes more solid on the other side, and the struts grow further apart until they eventually stop altogether.
After about 20 more minutes of walking down the winding subterranean tunnel, it opens up into a spacious cavern. Stalactites and stalagmites dot the floor and ceiling, and the sound of dripping water can be heard in the distance. There are several glowing mushrooms growing around the rock formations, illuminating several shallow puddles of a bright green substance that looks similar to the bodies of the slimes from the first cave entrance.
B'Reh steps carefully into the cavern, her sharp eyes scanning the dimly lit space. Drawing closer to one of the green puddles, she grips her quarterstaff tightly and extends it to prod the surface, wary of any sudden movement. "Let’s be sure these aren’t hiding any unpleasant surprises," she whispers, her voice low but steady.
She then kneels near a clearer patch of ground, inspecting for any tracks, feathers, or other signs that might indicate Kenna’s passage. "If she came through here," she murmurs to the others, "there might be something—disturbed puddles, broken fungi, anything out of place. Let me see what I can find."
(How about I roll for Survival and you modify the roll as is appropriate for the skill that best suits the situation, like Survival (+-0), Nature (-4) or Perception (+-0)?) Survival: 22, incl. 2 from guidance
Vira crouches near a patch of glowing mushrooms, carefully brushing aside some loose debris to get a better look. "Let’s keep an eye on those puddles, too. If they’re slimes like the ones we fought before, they might not stay still for long."
((She'll help with B'Reh's check if it's Survival or Perception))
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[[ I think I would likely switch the abilities used for B'Reh's checks, with survival giving a better sense of the natural rock formations and hazards, and investigation being used to search an area for a specific tool/item? Not that it particularly matters with a 2 and a 19, but always interesting to see how different people interpret what skills are relevant for something! Probably could even argue nature for the first one. ]]
Searching the ground near the portion of the tunnel with the rotted struts, Vira doesn't see any obvious signs of Kenna having passed through, despite this being the only way she reasonably could've passed through given the size of the other branching tunnels you've passed so far. She does notice once again that the supports are unaltered, meaning that if Kenna did pass through here, it must have been with either a great deal of speed or care to avoid triggering a collapse.
As B'Reh taps the supports, the clicking sound of talons against wood echoes down the stone tunnel, and a layer of dust falls from the ceiling along with a few small pebbles. As the sound fades, so does the falling dust, and nothing else notable happens above, nor does the strig find any further hints down low. The only weak points she can spot are the struts themselves, whose weakness initially triggered this dilemma in how to proceed.
Despite a very thorough search, there simply isn't much in the way of raw materials to work with in the cave system. The tunnels from the entrance to here appeared to have been unsupported by any similar beams, fairly solid apart from the occasional crevice or branching passage. The only plants that seem to grow down here are simple mosses and fungi. There would be more to choose from outside the caves, with the few vine-covered trees dotted around the swamp, but that would require two repetitions of the 20 minute trek that got the party here in the first place.
"It looks like we either bash our way through to that other tunnel or make our way through here very fast or very slow." Vira observes with a sigh, disappointed at the lack of materials. "Getting vines from outside would take a while, and I'm not even sure they'd strengthen the struts enough to be worth it."
(Does Aric have any other ideas?)
History: 20
Investigation: 15
D&D since 1984
Aric thinks back to the writings he studied at the monastery in preparation for his journey. Many of the books and scrolls he's read are too out-of-date to contain any truly useful information in their print, but he recalls a note scratched onto a scrap of bark that mentioned the abandoned tunnels of the Mokk Caverns, and the frequent small collapses that occurred there. Whatever monk or acolyte had written the note had suffered a collapse themselves, sustaining a few injuries in the process, but found it moderately simple to dig upward and crawl across the rubble to the far tunnel entrance they had originally been trying to reach. A quick study of the cave roof corroborates this story for Aric. After all, if the rubble and instability went far enough upward to fill the passage entirely, it likely would spread further outward as well, rather than being this localized within the cavern.
Aric shares and suggests this course of action.
D&D since 1984
Vira's feathers puff up in excitement as she hears the idea. "I never would've thought of that. Let's give it a try. You all stay back; time for me to do what I'm good at." After waiting until the others are a safe distance away, she swings her greataxe at the nearest strut before running back herself.
To hit: 9 -.-, damage 4
B'Reh listens intently as Aric shares the note's insight and nods thoughtfully. "That might just work. If we can dig upward and create a small passage, it could save us the risk of a full collapse, but the tunnel we create might just be as unstable. Though, I suppose the main pressure and instability will be relieved this way. I say we try."
She turns to Vira, offering a faint smile as the strig moves to climb. "Here, let me help." With her quarterstaff in hand, she uses it as a lever to assist in loosening rocks and debris as Vira begins to dig into the ceiling. At the same time, she places a hand lightly on Vira’s shoulder and utters a quiet prayer, her holy symbol glowing faintly as she casts Guidance. "May the Rhythm guide your strength."
As the debris begins to fall, she steps back carefully, keeping an eye on the struts for any signs of additional strain. "Let’s keep steady, everyone. Slow and deliberate—this should work if we remain patient."
|| Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Valerian - Elf Rogue - Wildnis || b'Reh - Stig Cleric - Humblewood || Rowan - Halfling Giant - Runewarren || Khazela - Spiritfarer Dervish - Tribute || Arista - Frost Sorcerer - Old Keep || Zephirah - Demonic Bard - Sands || Merry - Gifted Surgeon - Short || Marasatra - Blood Mage - Avernus || Lan - Dwarf Dragon - Wuxian ||
As the others back away, Vira winds up for a swing at the first of the rotted struts, but the close confines slightly throws off her swing and her axe merely glances off the wall.
As she retreats, Brynlee reaches for her crystal and says, "Let's see if I can be of some use here." Holding out her palm, she releases a burst of flame that streaks towards the strut Vira just swung at (nat 1 to hit). Unfortunately, her very limited darkvision from B'Reh's earlier spell fails her, and the flames go streaking past the strut into the tunnel before hitting a wall where the tunnel begins to curve. "Dratted cave. Do we just keep trying to hit the struts until they break? Or do you think there are other ways to collapse it?"
[[ AlterEgo has had some life things come up, so I'm going to take minimal control of Brynlee for now until either they're able to return to the game or we get to a point where Brynlee can break off from the group and we can bring in someone new, likely once you all return to Winnowing Reach. She'll mostly just go along with your plans and actions in the caverns, but I won't necessarily stick to my general rule of only using cantrips/unlimited use abilities for my actions on behalf of a PC. ]]
"We can keep swinging, but it might take more effort than it’s worth. These struts look rotted—maybe there’s a weak spot we can hit, or another way to bring the whole thing down faster. If we can loosen the base or use the weight of the tunnel against itself, we might not have to smash every single one."
She taps her axe lightly against her shoulder, scanning the structure more closely. "Anyone got a way to make it shake? Something that might weaken it all at once? If not, I’m ready to keep hacking away." She steps back toward the struts, ready to try again if needed. "We’ll get it down one way or another."
Aric will fire his crossbow at the strut. (13 to hit for 8 damage)
D&D since 1984
Aric hits one of the struts with his crossbow, chipping away at some of the rotten wood, but the structure doesn't seem to suffer greatly from the single hit.
Brynlee speaks up in response to Vira. "I can try something to shake it up a bit, but it'll take more energy than those simple energy bursts I've been using. Should I try it, or do you want to look for weak spots first?"
B'Reh steps forward, her tone calm but firm. "If it takes this much effort to bring the tunnel down, it might be more stable than we thought. Perhaps it will hold long enough for us to pass through and return safely, provided we move with care." She glances at Brynlee, a thoughtful expression crossing her face. "And even if the worst should happen and the tunnel collapses behind us, your talents as a burrower could prove invaluable. Let’s conserve our strength for what lies ahead." She pauses, gripping her holy symbol tightly. "I say we proceed cautiously. If we’re wrong, we’ll deal with the consequences together, but this takes valuable time and after we need even more time to dig through the rubble for sure."
|| Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Valerian - Elf Rogue - Wildnis || b'Reh - Stig Cleric - Humblewood || Rowan - Halfling Giant - Runewarren || Khazela - Spiritfarer Dervish - Tribute || Arista - Frost Sorcerer - Old Keep || Zephirah - Demonic Bard - Sands || Merry - Gifted Surgeon - Short || Marasatra - Blood Mage - Avernus || Lan - Dwarf Dragon - Wuxian ||
Vira nods in agreement with B'Reh, ready to brave the stubborn tunnel.
Brynlee nods in agreement as well, tucking her crystal back into a pocket of her robes.
[[ Everyone please roll a stealth check to pass through the tunnel without disturbing anything. ]]
Vira stealth: 8 -.-;; + 3 guidance if allowed
Aric Stealth - NAT 20 for 25
D&D since 1984
B’Reh also rolled a 8 (misclicked and rolled Religion but I figured we can just use that roll. Mod should be +2 instead of -1, so it returns 8. And feel free to use guidance. I think we only get to use it once, so I won’t add it, too)
|| Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Valerian - Elf Rogue - Wildnis || b'Reh - Stig Cleric - Humblewood || Rowan - Halfling Giant - Runewarren || Khazela - Spiritfarer Dervish - Tribute || Arista - Frost Sorcerer - Old Keep || Zephirah - Demonic Bard - Sands || Merry - Gifted Surgeon - Short || Marasatra - Blood Mage - Avernus || Lan - Dwarf Dragon - Wuxian ||
[[ Just realized I forgot to specify that this was a group check, which would probably affect how you use your buffs. Aric can also help one person since he is proficient and can use help as a bonus action. B'Reh would have disadvantage from her armor unless Aric used his help to negate that, but for a group check it's probably preferable to just let her have a lower roll and help someone else with true advantage, so I'll go ahead and apply it to Vira in this case for the sake of moving things along. ]]
Brynlee: 10 (fail)
B'Reh: Disadv. (20, 6) = 8 (fail)
Vira: 16 + Guidance = 19 (success)
Aric: 25 (success)
The group moves through the tunnel carefully, with Brynlee and B'Reh making a bit more noise than they mean to and sending a fresh layer of dust falling down, but the tunnel remains stable enough for you to pass through the area. The ceiling quickly becomes more solid on the other side, and the struts grow further apart until they eventually stop altogether.
After about 20 more minutes of walking down the winding subterranean tunnel, it opens up into a spacious cavern. Stalactites and stalagmites dot the floor and ceiling, and the sound of dripping water can be heard in the distance. There are several glowing mushrooms growing around the rock formations, illuminating several shallow puddles of a bright green substance that looks similar to the bodies of the slimes from the first cave entrance.
B'Reh steps carefully into the cavern, her sharp eyes scanning the dimly lit space. Drawing closer to one of the green puddles, she grips her quarterstaff tightly and extends it to prod the surface, wary of any sudden movement. "Let’s be sure these aren’t hiding any unpleasant surprises," she whispers, her voice low but steady.
She then kneels near a clearer patch of ground, inspecting for any tracks, feathers, or other signs that might indicate Kenna’s passage. "If she came through here," she murmurs to the others, "there might be something—disturbed puddles, broken fungi, anything out of place. Let me see what I can find."
(How about I roll for Survival and you modify the roll as is appropriate for the skill that best suits the situation, like Survival (+-0), Nature (-4) or Perception (+-0)?) Survival: 22, incl. 2 from guidance
|| Oriace - Halfling Bard - Dragon Heist || Valerian - Elf Rogue - Wildnis || b'Reh - Stig Cleric - Humblewood || Rowan - Halfling Giant - Runewarren || Khazela - Spiritfarer Dervish - Tribute || Arista - Frost Sorcerer - Old Keep || Zephirah - Demonic Bard - Sands || Merry - Gifted Surgeon - Short || Marasatra - Blood Mage - Avernus || Lan - Dwarf Dragon - Wuxian ||
Vira crouches near a patch of glowing mushrooms, carefully brushing aside some loose debris to get a better look. "Let’s keep an eye on those puddles, too. If they’re slimes like the ones we fought before, they might not stay still for long."
((She'll help with B'Reh's check if it's Survival or Perception))